Andy Burnham Empty Homes Plan: Councils Could Take Control Of Properties After Six Months

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has put empty and neglected homes at the centre of his housing agenda, backing new powers that would allow councils in England to intervene after a property has been vacant for just six months rather than two years. The policy could have particular significance in London, where the number of long-term empty homes has risen sharply.

The Andy Burnham empty homes plan is gathering attention after the Government confirmed reforms designed to make it substantially easier for local authorities to bring long-term vacant properties back into use.

Under the proposals, the qualifying period for an Empty Dwelling Management Order, commonly known as an EDMO, will fall from two years to six months. Councils will also face fewer evidential hurdles when seeking an order through the Residential Property Tribunal.

The distinction is important. Despite some reports describing the policy as councils being allowed to “seize” homes, an EDMO does not normally transfer ownership of the property to the council.

Instead, the local authority can take over its management, carry out necessary steps to bring it back into occupation and manage the home for up to seven years while the owner retains legal ownership.

The changes were formally announced by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government on 27 September and were followed by Burnham using his first Labour conference speech as Prime Minister to place the policy within a much wider attempt to rebuild Britain’s stock of public and affordable housing.

Burnham told Labour’s conference:

“We will give councils the power to take control of them and bring them back into the public housing stock.”

His speech went beyond properties that are simply vacant. Burnham also targeted rented homes in serious disrepair, particularly where landlords repeatedly fail to maintain them.

He said owners of the worst-quality properties would first receive warnings and that councils could ultimately be given an easier route to acquiring those homes if owners refused to act.

That means two related policies are developing. The first is the already announced reform of EDMOs for long-term empty homes.

The second is Burnham’s proposed stronger intervention against poor-quality occupied rental properties, where further legislation may be required.

As of 5 October 2026, detailed rules governing the second part of the proposal have not been published, while Propertymark notes that no commencement date has yet been given for the new six-month EDMO threshold.

Why the Plan Could Matter Particularly in London?

The scale of London’s empty-home problem makes the reforms more significant for the capital than the national headline numbers initially suggest.

There were 105,138 empty homes in London in 2025, according to analysis published by the London Assembly using government data. That represented roughly 2.7% of London’s housing stock and an 81% increase from 58,096 in 2016.

More strikingly, the number of homes classed as long-term empty increased from 19,845 in 2016 to 47,287 in 2025 – a rise of 138%. Between 2024 and 2025 alone, the total increased by around 23%.

That is happening while London boroughs are facing extreme pressure from homelessness and temporary accommodation.

The London Assembly said earlier this year that boroughs were spending around £5.5 million a day on temporary accommodation.

Nationally, the most recent figures show 303,185 homes in England had been empty for more than six months in 2025, equivalent to roughly 1.2% of the dwelling stock.

Burnham’s argument is therefore that building new homes cannot be the only answer while hundreds of thousands of existing properties are sitting unused.

The policy also fits his promise for a much larger council-house programme.

In his conference speech, Burnham said the Government wanted council housing to remain available for future generations and proposed reforming Right to Buy for newly constructed council properties.

For London councils, shortening the EDMO threshold could mean that authorities no longer have to watch a vacant property deteriorate for two years before considering formal intervention.

The Government is also removing requirements around evidence such as anti-social behaviour and community support when councils apply to the Residential Property Tribunal.

Ministers say this should make intervention faster and reduce some of the administrative barriers that have discouraged councils from using EDMOs.

That last point is crucial because the power already exists but has been used extremely rarely.

Reporting around the reforms notes that there have been no EDMO applications since 2021, illustrating the gap between councils technically possessing an enforcement tool and being practically able or willing to use it.

Housing Experts Welcome the Aim but Question Resources

Tenant campaigners have broadly welcomed Burnham’s direction.

Holly Williamson, chief executive of Generation Rent, said:

“When landlords don’t listen to warnings, councils should have the power to make sure homes provide the foundation families need.”

Generation Rent said the Government’s tougher approach could help deal not only with vacant properties but also with neglected private rented homes.

The organisation pointed to English Housing Survey evidence suggesting around one million privately rented homes fail the decent homes standard.

Landlord representatives are more cautious.

Chris Norris, chief policy officer at the National Residential Landlords Association, said:

“Tenants should not have to put up with poor-quality housing.”

However, the NRLA wants ministers to distinguish clearly between landlords who deliberately neglect properties and responsible owners dealing with legitimate circumstances.

It has asked the Government for details on how warnings would operate, how long owners would have to rectify problems and precisely how council acquisition powers would work.

That distinction may become one of the most contentious parts of the policy.

Homes can be empty for very different reasons. A property may be awaiting renovation, caught in probate, undergoing a sale, affected by building-safety problems or temporarily unused because of an owner’s personal circumstances.

The policy will therefore need safeguards if councils are to intervene aggressively without treating every empty property as deliberate neglect.

Propertymark has similarly argued that reducing the threshold to six months could enable earlier intervention but warned that the effectiveness of the policy will ultimately depend on the staff, funding and expertise available to councils.

It has called for dedicated local capacity, practical support for owners and greater cooperation between councils and property professionals.

That may prove the largest practical obstacle.

Giving a council permission to manage an empty property is different from giving it the resources to inspect the building, navigate tribunal proceedings, finance repairs, meet safety requirements, find tenants and administer the home afterwards.

The UK Government says it is examining additional changes designed to stop local authorities having to absorb the costs of managing homes under EDMOs, but those arrangements have not yet been finalised.

For London, where renovation and construction costs can be particularly high, that funding question could determine whether the new powers become a frequently used housing tool or remain largely theoretical.

Burnham’s proposals nevertheless signal a significant change in political approach.

Rather than looking exclusively at planning permission and new construction to increase housing supply, the Government is placing much greater emphasis on recovering existing housing that is vacant, derelict or seriously neglected.

The immediate change is straightforward: once the reforms take effect, councils in England could start the EDMO process after a home has been empty for six months rather than waiting two years.

The bigger question is what follows.

If councils receive the money and staff required to use the powers effectively,

London’s tens of thousands of long-term empty properties could become an increasingly important part of attempts to reduce housing waiting lists and temporary accommodation.

If those resources do not materialise, shortening the qualifying period alone may do little to change what happens on the ground.

For Burnham, who has tied his premiership closely to expanding council housing and tackling homelessness, the success of the empty homes plan will ultimately be measured not by how many additional powers councils receive, but by how many vacant properties actually become occupied homes again.